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Top 10 Brick-And-Mortar Retail Statistics That You Must Know

In this post, we will be talking about the 10 most crucial brick-and-mortar retail statistics. So, if you are into physical retail or planning to launch one, you must know about these stats.

There is a lot being said about eCommerce vs. brick-and-mortar & all those kind of stuff. It’s high time that we clear the air with real facts or statistics.

We have hand-picked only those stats that really make the difference.

So, let’s dive in.

THE 10 MOST IMPORTANT BRICK-AND-MORTAR RETAIL STATISTICS

1. Brick-and-mortar sales account for 94% of the total retail sales.

The verdict is clear: Brick-and-mortar businesses haven’t been affected by online businesses.

Despite the hoopla around eCommerce, brick-and-mortar stores still rule the retail industry. So, do not discount the potential of in-store sales yet. If you are planning to start an offline store then go ahead. They are not going anywhere anytime soon.

But again, it’s unfair to compare online sales with brick-and-mortar sales because of the age factor. eCommerce is still a relatively new industry.

The kind of growth that eCommerce has shown over the past few years, this stat might just change in the near future.

2. 49% of the Americans prefer to shop at brick-and-mortar stores.

Well, this stat shouldn’t surprise most of us. Because online shopping has some inherent risk of :

Fake or damaged products

Different (than what is shown) products

Financial fraud etc.

Whereas physical stores give us the convenience to see & touch the products. So, the chances of fraud are minimal. In short, at brick-and-mortar shops, you get what you see.

Rest 51% of Americans still prefer the online shopping way.

3. The number one reason (56%) why consumers shop in-store is the ability to feel & try the products.

This stat is obvious. The majority of consumers prefer brick-and-mortar stores to feel & try the products.

Some of the other reasons why consumers prefer in-store shopping over online:

Products look different (41%)

Long delivery time (34%)

High shipping costs (25%)

Complicated return process (16%)

This stat can be used by online businesses to improve their performance.

And, offline stores can further improve this stat by bringing products more closer to the customers. That can be done by using emerging technologies like the AI & the virtual reality.

In short, you need to give visitors a compelling reason to visit your store.

5. 50% of retail store visitors visit just to see & feel the products before buying them online.

This stat clearly implies that brick-and-mortar retail stores don’t offer competitive prices. The visitors go there just to check the products & finally buy them online to get the best price deals.

So, if you wanna increase your sales then convert these 50% visitors into customers. That can be done by giving them the best price deals.

For any tier or category of sales, pricing is one of the most powerful deal makers or breakers. Of course, there are other factors like the quality of product & service. But, it’s the price that eventually rules the roost.

7. 71% of the rural customers prefer brick-and-mortar shopping

Rural customers aren’t that comfortable with online shopping because of:

Delivery issues (Non-serviceable areas)

Delay in delivery (Remote areas)

Network issues

Therefore, rural areas are a great opportunity for retailers in terms of expansion. That is where you can open your new store & capture new sales.

8. Only about 25% of the major retailers track store traffic

I must confess that this stat is painful. How can even major retailers ignore the tracking of one of the most important data?

In today’s retail world, the more you know about customers, the more advantage you have. The customer data gives you the base to launch personalized offers & take correct sales decisions.

Online stores have a major advantage of tracking their visitor behavior like traffic & conversion. If brick-and-mortar shops want to compete with online giants then they have to start taking data seriously.

Store traffic data is fundamental to deriving other crucial data like conversion. Based on the conversion data, stores can tweak their marketing campaigns.

Example: If your retail store footfall is 200 visitors per day & 50 of them end up buying then the conversion rate is 25%. Now, you need to track this visitor & conversion data on daily basis. If on a particular day of the week the number of visitors drops consistently then start a specific marketing campaign for that day. And, if on a particular day of the week, the conversion rate drops consistently then make your sales personnel more active on that day.

9. 99% of retail businesses employ less than 50 people

This stat simply tells us that most retail businesses struggle to scale up. That is because of the following:

Increased competition from other physical stores

Steep discounting by online stores

Lack of scaling-up mindset

So, only 1% of all retail businesses scale up to employ more than 50 people. These are the only ones that go on to become national players with multiple branches.

To scale up effectively, you need to focus on:

Sales volume

Plowing back the profit to increase capital

Standard operating procedures

Using technology for strong controls

Avoiding errors & fraud

10. 84% of consumers feel retailers should do more to integrate online & offline channels

As a retailer, it’s important to explore both offline & online channels. There are many brick-and-mortar stores that see a jump in sales after going online.

But, this stat isn’t just about starting an eCommerce store. Instead, it’s more about integrating your online store with your physical store.

Integrating online with offline channel gives the following benefits to consumers:

Easy returns

Try & feel the product

Cross-channel support

Quick delivery (Pick up from nearest store)

The eCommerce giant Amazon has already been testing this integration strategy with its Amazon Go.

Conclusion

Brick-and-mortar stores’ sales growth has been declining over the years. On the other hand, online stores have been growing exponentially.

Therefore, it’s high time that offline stores’ owners understand the aforesaid stats & take corrective measures.

What do you think of the aforesaid brick-and-mortar retail statistics?. Please comment below.